Wash. Admin. Code § 480-120-173 - Restoring service after discontinuation

(1) A company must restore a discontinued service when:

(a) The causes of discontinuation not related to a delinquent balance have been removed or corrected. In the case of deceptive means, as described in WAC 480-120-172(1), this means the customer has corrected the deception and has paid the estimated amount of service that was taken through deceptive means, all costs resulting from the deception, any applicable deposit, and any delinquent balance owed to the company by that customer for the same class of service. A company may require a deposit from a customer that has obtained service deceptively as described in WAC 480-120-172(1). A company is not required to allow six-month arrangements on a delinquent balance as provided for in WAC 480-120-174(1) when it can demonstrate that a customer obtained service through deceptive means in order to avoid payment of a delinquent amount owed to that company;

(b) Payment or satisfactory arrangements for payment of all proper charges due from the applicant, including any proper deposit and reconnection fee, have been made as provided in WAC 480-120-122 (Establishing credit -- Residential services) and 480-120-174 (Payment arrangements); or

(c) The commission staff directs restoration pending resolution of any dispute between the company and the applicant or customer over the propriety of discontinuation.

(2) After the customer notifies the company that the causes for discontinuation have been corrected, and the company has verified the correction, the company must restore service(s) within the following periods:

(a) Service(s) that do not require a premises visit for reconnection must be restored within one business day; and

(b) Service(s) that require a premises visit for reconnection must be restored within two business days. Companies must offer customers a four-hour window during which the company will arrive to complete the restoration.

(c) For purposes of this section Saturdays are considered business days.

(3) A company may refuse to restore service to a customer who has been discontinued twice for deceptive means as described in WAC 480-120-172(1) for a period of five years from the date of the second disconnection, subject to petition by the customer to the commission for an order requiring restoration of service based on good cause.

Notes

Wash. Admin. Code § 480-120-173

Statutory Authority: RCW 80.01.040 and 80.04.160. 05-03-031 (Docket No. UT 040015, General Order No. R-516), § 480-120-173, filed 1/10/05, effective 2/10/05; 03-01-065 and 03-03-090 (Docket No. UT-990146, General Order No. R-507 and 507A), § 480-120-173, filed 12/12/02 and 1/16/03, effective 7/1/03.